Weather: 103 and "see below"
First, we have to backtrack to rodeo night because oh boy oh boy. I have officially meet my first true cowboy, yes their wear real leather boots with spurs, straw hats, american leather belts steel belt buckles, plaid shirts, and straight blue jeans. I was told that to have this fine straw hat I'd also have to take the cowboy. Rodeo is what the kids play here, no T-ball in sight.
5 times a year this show is held and it was our lucky night. No on really gave a hoot we were there, but we all stood stunned smiles wiped across our face. Texas, I really want to like you simply because you are different and fearless to show your flare, but I can't say I'm happy to see baby cows get lassoed or 72 oz steaks on a menu.
4am rise, 5:15am we are riding under Venus, Jupiter, and the entire starry sky. The sun rises and we into a vortex wind tunnel heading the wrong direction in slow motion we went. To put it in perspective we usually ride at an average of 18mph. 2 rows of riders, totaling 16, pacelining down hwy 152 west could barely break 11mph. Daring to check the weather, we find the wind mph hits 25. And that was our headwind from hell. To make matters worse, we hit the roughest road we have been on. No other day has topped the mental physical challenge of today. In fact no other ride/race, not even the famous 112 mile, 9000 ft of climbing women's Rapha prestige Time trial that tested my limits this past April. The heat of the day was nowhere to be found, the wind blowing it right between our magic school bus paceline. What was to be found, riders in tears still in pedaling motion while others vomited on the side of the road over something funky for lunch.
To make matters worse, playing with Josh's new illegal knife toy this morning, I gashed my finger. What do you think of stitches, Coach Collin questions me as we search for gauze with a blood dripping hand in a dark van at 5am. One finger down, 100 miles to go. Stitches can come later.
At mile 50, we had accumulated a pace line of nearly 2/3 of the group. 20 riders in, our dreary day became despite the hardest one of the most memorable. At mile 70 buggy caught up to us and joined the party, pulling the pack for 5 miles, cutting through the wind turbine like a rock of steel. We were a fearless codependent pack. Nothing could break us down, not the 4 flats or tire patched with cliff bar wrappers. When one rider starts to bonk, the 19 of us pull out bars of every flavor.
Mile 95, we rename ourselves wolf pack and howl our way into the town of Amarillo Texas for the remaining 10 miles. We hit mile 100 with a total ride time of 13.5 hours.
And now what? We are in the city of the world famous steak eating competition, and josh, who is the contender, has been sucking down only GUs for 100 miles, has arranged a donation of 2 limos to take us all to see this 72 oz steak, salad, shrimp cocktail, and 1lb potato be devoured. If completed Bike & build with be engraved in the walls of Amarillo.
